Conquest of Liang Province

The Conquest of Liang Province was a military campaign launched by the Eastern Han against the rebellious inhabitants of Liang Province in northwestern China, whose local commanders Bian Zhang and Han Sui had went up in arms following the Yellow Turban Rebellion. It ended in a bloody Eastern Han victory after a year of battles.

Background
After the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Bian Zhang and Han Sui led a rebellion in Liang Province, in the northwestern-most region of China. The Xi Liang yokels went up in arms to secure independence from the crumbling Han Dynasty, but the Eastern Han forces mustered under Dong Zhuo, who was ordered to subdue it.

War
Dong Zhuo faced experienced troops numbering in the hundreds of thousands, and his army of conscripts fared poorly against the devoted Xiliang troops. In 185, the Imperial Court ordered Zhang Wen to stop Bian Zhang, and he advanced to Chang'an, where he reprimanded Dong Zhuo's ineptitude, but to no avail. Sun Jian, who accompanied Zhang Wen, recommended that Dong Zhuo be executed, but was refused. As it happened, when Bian Zhang heard that Zhang Wen's force had arrived, he surrendered without a fight.